For the past two seasons, Florida baseball has had the luxury of seeing Taylor Gushue as the team’s catcher.
Gushue started 111 of Florida’s last 122 games behind the plate, providing a sense of assurance and comfortability to UF’s pitching staff.
To add to that, Gushue was reliable at the plate, posting a career-high .316 batting average in 2014 while leading all Gators in total bases (105), RBI (49), doubles (16), sacrifice flies (11), home runs (six) and slugging percentage (.467).
But he’s gone now.
Gushue opted to forgo his senior season and turn pro after being selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the fourth round of June’s MLB Draft.
With Gushue gone, one of Florida’s goals heading into the season is finding his replacement.
And coach Kevin O’Sullivan plans to utilize the youth on his roster to fill the void.
Three of the four catchers on Florida’s roster this season are freshmen, and O’Sullivan said each has the opportunity to make an immediate impact.
"To get three really quality guys, we feel good about it," O’Sullivan said.
The most highly touted of the freshmen trio is JJ Schwarz.
He was rated as the top high school catcher in the state of Florida and the No. 5 catcher nationally out of Palm Beach Gardens (Fla.) High by Perfect Game and was drafted in the 17th round by the Milwaukee Brewers in the MLB Draft.
The 6-foot-1 Schwarz finished his senior year with a .361 batting average along with 33 RBIs, 15 runs, seven homers and four doubles.
"JJ’s swung the bat really good and he’s improved tremendously behind the plate," O’Sullivan said.
Pitcher Logan Shore said it is a process getting used to a new catcher, especially after working with just one person for an entire season.
"It’s just about getting comfortable with the different things that they do different than Taylor did," Shore said.
The sophomore righty said he has spent time away from practice getting to know the three freshmen so that they can be on the same page.
"It’s just kind of getting to know my mental process of pitching and getting a feel for what they like to call and what Sully’s going to call," Shore said.
Follow Jordan McPherson on Twitter @J_McPherson1126
Taylor Gushue bats during Florida’s 3-1 win against FSU on March 18 at McKethan Stadium. Gushue was a second-team All-American in 2014 after batting a career-high .318
